In an article published in The Conversation, experts detailed how Lyme disease’s persistence may help researchers develop a new vaccine as cases continue to rise. The experts explained that the disease-causing Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria can withstand diverse conditions throughout its transmission and infection cycles by adapting the appearance of its outer surface proteins depending on whether it is occupying a black-legged tick or a host. Once an infected tick transfers the bacteria to a host, the infection may be eradicated by the immune system. However, in non-natural host reservoirs such as humans, B burgdorferi bacteria can endure, causing long-term infections and diseases such as Lyme neuroborreliosis carditis and Lyme arthritis. The experts noted that several factors may contribute to the bacteria’s persistence in humans—including its genetic makeup; motility that allows it to access the cardiovascular system, nervous system, and joints; and its ability to evade the B burgdorferi–specific antibody response through antigenic variation. Further, the bacteria can alter its DNA through gene transfer, causing reinfections or coinfections with multiple strains and leading to chronic infections. They emphasized that in order to identify novel therapeutic targets and develop an effective vaccine against the bacteria, researchers need to better understand the infectious cycle of Lyme disease, the proteins that are integral to the bacteria’s survival in hosts, and the molecular mechanisms that may reduce disease severity.
October 05, 2023